Bolton Distances Himself From Trump on Otto Warmbier Excuse: ‘That’s HIS View’

On CNN’s State of the Union Sunday morning, host Jake Tapper spoke with National Security Advisor John Bolton about the North Korea summit. Asked if he, like President Trump, took dictator Kim Jong Un at his word about the treatment of Otto Warmbier, Bolton refused to answer.

The President said that he doesn’t believe Kim Jong Un “would have allowed” the brutal mistreatment of Warmbier to happen and that he will “take him at his word” that he didn’t know about it. Bolton told Tapper that Trump made it “very clear” he thinks what happened to Warmbier is unacceptable, but Tapper got right to the point.

“Do you take Kim Jong Un at his word?” he asked.

“The President takes him at his word–” Bolton began to reply.

Tapper interrupted “No I know he does, but what about you?”

“My opinion doesn’t matter,” said Bolton.”

“You’re the National Security Advisor,” Tapper said.

“I am not the national security decision maker,” said Bolton. “That’s his view.”

Tapper pointed out that the Warmbier family does not believe Kim Jong Un was unaware of the mistreatment, and that no experts on North Korea think that the brutal treatment of the American, or anything else that happens in the absolute dictatorship, takes place without Kim Jong Un’s knowledge

and consent. He asked Bolton about it repeatedly and whether his own knowledge of North Korea informs him the same.

“I don’t know one expert on North Korea who thinks that anything could have happened to Otto Warmbier without Kim Jong Un know about it ahead of time,” said Tapper. “Do you disagree?”

“Good for them,” said Bolton.

Bolton added that “people in the media seem to have the impression that administration officials kind of comment from the distance, as if I were a Fox News contributor as I used to be. I don’t do that anymore.”.

Just as he did in emphasizing “that’s his view” a moment earlier, Bolton again distanced himself from what he characterized at Trump’s “opinion.”

“I give my advice to the president, I give my opinions to the president, he makes up his own mind. That’s why he’s President,” said Bolton.

Watch the clip above, courtesy of CNN.

[Featured image via screengrab]

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